Hot water control system



Aug. 16, 1955 R. c. EARLEY 2,715,499

HOT WATER CONTROL SYSTEM Filed July 27, 1951 I N VE NTOR.

United States Patent 2,715,499 HOT WATER CONTROL SYSTEM Roy C. Earley,Danvers, Mass., assignor to Ruggles- Klingemann Mfg. Co., Salem, Mass.Application July 27, 1951, Serial No. 238,793 2 Claims. (Cl. 236-25) Mypresent invention relates to fluid heated systems, such for example ashot water for domestic or process requirements and the subject matter ofwhich is related to my application Serial Number 224,418 filed May 3,1951, now Patent No. 2,680,563 issued June 8, 1954 being an extension ofthe broader features of the original invention.

The main object of the invention is to provide means for controlling theheat input, to the fluid to be heated, proportionally in accordance withthe variation in flow of the heated fluid. A further object of theinvention is in providing novel control means whereby the periodicdemands are controlled in such a way as to avoid heat input when thereis no demand and consequently avoid overheating.

Fig. 1 illustrates the application of my invention to an instantaneoushot water heater, the steam supply being controlled by means of adiaphragm operated valve.

Fig. 2 shows a vertical cross section of the hot water flow operateddevice and the admission and exhaust pilot valve for actuating a Bourdontube to in turn operate a mercury switch for electric valve operation(not shown).

The same reference characters indicate the same or similar parts in theseveral figures. In my copending application I illustrated and describedthe broader aspects of my invention as an auxiliary control in a twotemperature control system in which some of the elements of thecombination were common to both. In my present application I haveillustrated and described my invention in its broader aspects omittingfeatures which involve invention only as a combination of the whole.Referring to Fig. 1 a heater shell 1 has cold water inlet 2 and hotwater outlet 3. A conventional type of diaphragm op erated steam valve 4controls steam supply to the heater, a flow operated device 5 operates apilot valve 7 (shown in Fig. 2) for controlling a source of fluidpressure for actuating the steam control valve 4. Referring to Fig. 2the flow operated device 5 has inner member 6 which operates pilot valve7 proportional to the flow demand from heater 1 and this in turncontrols the steam supply to the heater. In the operation pilot valve 7is raised closing port 8 and opening port 9 permitting fluid pressure toenter ports 10 and pass through pipe 11 to the Bourdon tube 12 ordiaphragm operated valve 4, the case may be, depending on whether themain steam control valve is electrically operated, or diaphragm actuatedas in Fig. 4. On a discontinuance of flow through valve 5 inner valve 6will become seated, by its own heft, closing port 9 and opening port 8to exhaust connection 16 to hot well or other draining receptacle. Thisoperation exhausts the pressure from the Bourdon tube, or diaphragmchamber 21 of the diaphragm operated valve 4 thereby closing the steamsupply to the heater.

In the case of electric valve operation of the steam supply, the Bourdontube 12 tends to straighten when pressure is admitted, thus causing thetube 13 to be tilted on pivot point 14 closing an electric circuit to inturn operate an electric operated steam control valve, either motor orsolenoid operated and closing the steam sup ply to the heater.

It should be understood that valve 4 has a reverse seating, meaning thatthe valve is opened when pressure is admitted to the diaphragm chamber21 and closed by spring 22 when pressure is exhausted from chamber 21.

It should be further understood that what is referred 2,715,499 PatentedAug. 16, 1955 to as flow operated device includes parts 5 and 6 in bothFigs. 2 and 3.

The apparatus of this invention are similar in certain of their broaderaspects to the apparatus of a two temperature hot water control systemas disclosed in my co-pending application Serial Number 224,418 filedMay 3, 1951, now Patent No. 2,680,563 issued June 8, 1954. The subjectmatter common to this application and application Serial Number 224,418is claimed in this application.

Having described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secureby Letters Patent is:

1. In a hot water control system comprising in combination, a heater, asteam supply line to the heater, a steam supply valve in said line,motive means for operating said valve, a cold water inlet to the heater,a hot water delivery outlet from the heater, a casing through which thehot water flows, a flow operated member in said casing, a controlchamber mounted on said casing, said control chamber having an upper andlower compartments, a control valve interposed between saidcompartments, said control valve being operatively connected with saidflow operated member, ports leading from the casing to the lowercompartment, an atmospheric exhaust connection from the uppercompartment, said control valve having a neutral position in which it isnot effective and two relatively efiective positions in which waterpressure from the said casing is conveyed to the steam valve motivemeans to cause said valve to in crease the supply of steam to the heateron an increase in hot Water flow acting on said flow member, and toexhaust fluid pressure to cause steam valve motive means to operate saidvalve to reduce steam supply to the heater on a reduction in the flow ofhot Water acting on said flow member.

2. In a hot water control system comprising in combination, a heater forheating the water, a steam supply line to the heater, a steam supplyvalve in said line, motive means for operating said valve, resilientspring means for biasing said valve to a closed position, a cold waterinlet to the heater, a hot water delivery outlet from the heater, acasing through which the hot Water flows, said casing having an inletand an outlet, a partition wall separating the inlet from the outlet, anorifice in said wall, a flow operated member adapted to normally closesaid orifice, a control chamber mounted on said casing, said controlchamber having upper and lower compartments, a control valve interposedbetween the upper and lower compartments and operatively connected withsaid flow operated member, ports leading from said casing to the lowercompartment, an atmospheric exhaust connection from the uppercompartment, said control valve having a neutral position in which it isnot effective and two effective positions in which water pressure fromthe said casing is admitted or exhausted from the steam supply motivemeans, the operation being such that on an increase in flow through saidcasing said flow operated member operates the control valve to admitfluid pressure from the lower compartment to actuate the steam valvemotive means to supply an increased amount of steam to said heater andon a decrease in hot water flow to exhaust fluid pressure from the saidmotive means to the upper compartment to thereby reduce the supply ofsteam to said heater.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS1,231,822 Warman July 3, 1917 1,356,121 Beler -l Oct. 19, 1920 2,006,035Stewart June 25, 1935 2,572,253 Fellows Oct. 23, 1951 2,644,641 ClarksonJuly 7, 1953

